Which software sell policy is the most effective one?

This is a discussion on Which software sell policy is the most effective one? within the A Brief History of Cprogramming.com forums, part of the Community Boards category; Originally Posted by CornedBee
I fail to see the point in implementing or buying copy protection systems (both options are ...

I fail to see the point in implementing or buying copy protection systems (both options are costly) just to break them yourself. Why not simply ship the product without protection? It will be copied just the same.

The idea behind 'cracking' it yourself is, you usually only 'crack' an older version of it.

Until you can build a working general purpose reprogrammable computer out of basic components from radio shack, you are not fit to call yourself a programmer in my presence. This is cwhizard, signing off.

I think that in time, people are just going to get used to it. At least in my country, people seem less and less concerned about privacy anyway.

Private people yes, not very much concerned about privacy. But firms are.

Originally Posted by CornedBee

I fail to see the point in implementing or buying copy protection systems (both options are costly) just to break them yourself. Why not simply ship the product without protection? It will be copied just the same.

In case of photoshop many people I know pirated it because "it`s good, it`s cool and expensive". It`s about starting a hype. A "must have that also". Like "you also have photoshop already?". Imho stupid but it worked.

Lot of high quality software which is free does not get a lot attention. Paint applications are a good example here again. Photoshop may be necessary if you are a professional.

But just for my private fun I am pretty happy with the free paint.net and still don`t understand most of it`s features or don`t need it. Until I need a better application I would need a real education on using such applications.

Just to get more known and to find potential people who see the "free advertisements" and buy it therefore. Good, expensive and cracked software gets more attention. That`s the point.

Originally Posted by Perspective

server side web services are one example. But it can still be local software with a subscription service, think about how your antivirus software works. And as previously mentioned, Red Hat sells support for an OS based on a subscription model.

Lot of high quality software which is free does not get a lot attention. Paint applications are a good example here again. Photoshop may be necessary if you are a professional.

I think in the back of todays average person's mind there will always bee the idea that something free is inferior to something that costs money. In most cases the free part usually does come with some sort of trade off for quality, but not always.

I can't stand to hear teachers talk about open source and free products and say they are inferior because they are free and therefore come with no support.

I think in the back of todays average person's mind there will always bee the idea that something free is inferior to something that costs money.

Unfortunately this seems to be the case. Even when these free products' quality, stability and, above all, sobriety, is slapping them right in the face every single day of their lives.

The Open Source 'scene' is however daunting for a newcomer. And not always that sober (I'm still trying to understand why PHP has PEAR and PECL and not just one, or why they are both so irritatingly hard to setup). But there is no doubt that I would put my life in the hands of the Open Source community before I even thought of doing it to some business oriented company. At the very least I know that the tool I'm learning today will not be discontinued tomorrow (blatant accusation at Microsoft).

I think in the back of todays average person's mind there will always bee the idea that something free is inferior to something that costs money. In most cases the free part usually does come with some sort of trade off for quality, but not always.

I can't stand to hear teachers talk about open source and free products and say they are inferior because they are free and therefore come with no support.

In a professional production environment, the benefits of having a common development platform should not be underestimated.

"How do I get the photo to morph using method A?"

"Go to Image->Tools->Morphs->Method A"

"I don't see that menu."

"What version of Product X are you using?"

"I'm using product Y."

"Product Y cant morph using Method A."

"What do I do now?"

"Send your employees back to college to learn product X"

Hence why everyone just learns Photoshop and Visual Studio. They may not be the best, but at least your skills translate to a new job.

Until you can build a working general purpose reprogrammable computer out of basic components from radio shack, you are not fit to call yourself a programmer in my presence. This is cwhizard, signing off.